Construction Worker Injured at 3 World Trade Center

A construction worker fell 15 feet to the ground at 3 World Trade Center as he was installing a steel beam, the Fire Department of New York and the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey confirmed today.

The scene of the crane accident at 4 WTC earlier this year (photo by Daniel Edward Rosen)

The construction worker, described as a male in his 30s, was working on the installation of a beam at 1:27 p.m. when he slipped and fell 15 feet to the ground, authorities said. He suffered injuries to his head and arms and had to be taken to Bellevue Hospital Center, where he is listed in serious condition. Both of the man’s arms are believed be broken, an FDNY spokesperson said. He is an employee of Falcon Steel, sources said. “At the time of the fall, he was following all OSHA prescribed safety procedures,” said John Gallagher, a spokesman for Tishman Construction, which is serving as the construction manager for 3 World Trade Center.

Just hours before the accident occurred, The Commercial Observer spent an idyllic morning touring 4 World Trade Center, which is rapidly finishing construction. That building, however, has suffered small yet noteworthy accidents in recent months. In February, a crane accidentally dropped a load of steel beams 40 stories to the ground below, where it crushed a flatbed truck.

In June, a 37-year-old construction worker bruised his liver and sustained two fractured ribs after he fell six feet onto rebar. One day after that, a crane smashed its beam into the windows on the 46th floor of 4 World Trade Center, causing two window panes to shatter and sending glass down to the street below. No one was injured at the time of the incident.

Silverstein Properties, the co-developer of 3 and 4 World Trade Center, could not immediately comment on the accident at 3 World Trade Center.

Designed by Pritzker Prize-winning architect Richard Rogers, 3 World Trade Center will offer 2.8 million square feet of office space, with footplates ranging between 29,000 and 44,000 square feet. The building is set to finish construction in the summer of 2014.